


Passing In The Night

by knowledgeiscake



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, M/M, No Dialogue, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-19
Updated: 2020-04-19
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:20:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,317
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23736757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/knowledgeiscake/pseuds/knowledgeiscake
Summary: Steve has been scouring the world for the Winter Soldier, but he ends up finding Bucky in his own living room.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers
Comments: 9
Kudos: 62





	Passing In The Night

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to challenge myself to write something without dialogue, and this idea has been with me recently.  
> Sorry for the angst, but I'll kind of take anything to get me out of reality these days haha.

It’s about two months after he got dumped in the Potomac, and Steve is coming home from a workout. He’s been running himself extra hard since that day. Trying to get things in order, trying to find the Winter Soldier, or Bucky, or whoever it is that lives in that body now. Steve’s stressed, and he’s been letting that show in his workouts- pushing even the super-serum to its limits.

So, he’s sore and tired when he opens the door to his apartment, tossing the keys into the bowl, kicking off his shoes. He’s so distracted that he doesn’t notice anything amiss until he turns on the lights and notices that one shadow doesn’t disappear. A tall dark shape in his living room. A familiar shape. Bucky, still wrapped up in all the black leather and high tech armor, but definitely Bucky. And Steve freezes. For a while his mind is racing, but the it skids to a halt and all he can think is the pure thanks that Bucky is here and Bucky is okay and something somehow, maybe the look in his eyes, is saying that Bucky knows Steve and isn’t here to hurt him.

It takes a long time, but Steve’s brain does come back online, and he opens his mouth to start asking questions- how, when, why, and a dozen more, but Bucky rushes to him, pressing a hand over his mouth to quiet him. Steve wonders if it’s because the apartment might be bugged. Or maybe Bucky just doesn’t want to talk right now. Things are already complicated enough. Will knowing how Bucky got in really make things easier? No.

After a moment, Bucky’s hand falls away, leaving him and Steve inches apart, breathing the same air, staring at each other. Steve notices that Bucky’s hair is even longer now. With no small amount of hesitation, Steve reaches up and runs his fingers through greasy brown locks. Bucky jolts slightly at the touch but relaxes after a moment. It’s just a friendly hand.

Steve gets an idea and takes Bucky by the arm, guiding him into the bathroom. It doesn’t occur to Steve until he’s already fussing with the water on the shower that he just turned his back on a mass killer. When the water is good and hot, he turns back, seeing Bucky shifting nervously from foot to foot. Like he’s not sure what to do. Steve smiles, stepping aside and giving up the room to his “guest”. But just as he’s about to leave, Bucky grabs him by the hand, keeping him close. Steve falters, looking to Bucky for some kind of understanding. But the expression in his eyes is strange- one of fear and suspicion and worry. Steve doesn’t understand why, but he gets the gist of what Bucky wants. He takes a seat on the tile floor, settling in.

Bucky’s eyes still don’t look right, but at least he seems satisfied by the change in plan. Mechanically, he starts to peel off the layers of armor and clothing. Each article removed reveals more skin- so much of it littered with scars. Steve has seen his own share of combat, but the serum means he heals quickly and rarely scars. There must be something different about Bucky’s formulation. Something imperfect. Or maybe Bucky has just seen a lot more action.

Steve looks away respectfully as Bucky takes off his pants and doesn’t look back until Bucky’s in the shower- the frosted glass door pulled closed. He realizes he doesn’t know if the arm is even waterproof, though he suspects it probably is.

Bucky washes himself methodically, and Steve gets lost in watching steam grow on the bathroom mirror. He only looks back to the shower when he hears a ragged gasp come from inside. Steve is on his feet in the blink of an eye, and in seconds the shower door is open and he’s face to face with Bucky again. But there’s no attacker in the shower, like some irrational part of Steve’s brain had suspected. The only thing he sees is a shocked and red-eyed Bucky, chest still heaving from the sobs.

He doesn’t think about it much. Not at all, really. Steve just steps into the stream of hot water and pulls Bucky into a hug. Again, he resists at first, the instincts of a trained assassin keeping him on edge. But Steve doesn’t let go. He doesn’t back down. He just holds his best friend. And eventually Bucky melts. He wraps his arms awkwardly around Steve’s neck, burying his face in the now-soaked gym t-shirt. And he cries. And they both cry. And the shower washes each tear away as soon as it forms, and maybe that way they can pretend they’re not crying and it doesn’t bother them and everything is normal, even though it’s not and it probably never will be.

Eventually, the water starts to run cold. Only then does Steve turn off the water and step out of the shower, with Bucky following. And only then does Steve realize that he’s wearing soaking wet clothes and Bucky is completely naked. It makes Steve’s cheeks heat, but Bucky doesn’t seem bothered as he grabs a towel and starts drying himself off. Once dry, Bucky goes to put his tactical gear back on, but Steve stops him. Instead, he leads them both into the bedroom. If Bucky is uncomfortable now, he doesn’t show it.

Once in the bedroom, Steve roots through his dresser until he finds two pairs of sweatpants and two t-shirts. He strips off his own soaked clothes and puts on the dry ones, and Bucky does the same. Before long they are both dry and clothed, and Steve has no idea what is supposed to happen next. He just stares, at first. He just looks at Bucky, cataloguing all the ways he’s changed, wondering if the man will stay, trying to imagine how on Earth they’ll proceed if he does. Bucky’s eyes are different now- still distant, but less so. A little brighter. A little more present.

After a long pause, Steve decides he should get them something to eat. Bucky probably hasn’t had a good meal in ages. But as he walks past Bucky to get to the kitchen, a hand catches his own. Steve looks back, about to explain that he’s just going to the kitchen, that he’ll be right back, that Bucky can come with him. But before he can say anything, Bucky’s lips are on his- warm and sharp and insistent.

The kiss is simple for a while, a pressing force. Uncomplicated, like things used to be. But then something changes. Bucky’s hands are on Steve’s hips, and Steve’s hands are in Bucky’s hair. And they’ve never done this before, but the clothes are coming back off and they’re stumbling toward the bed. Steve doesn’t stop to think about it. He knows Bucky doesn’t either. They don’t think about it while they’re scrambling onto the bed and getting as close as possible. They don’t think about it when their hands start to wander, finding new places to touch. They don’t think about it when they start to moan into each other, or when they each come to their messy climax. They don’t even think about it when they’re pulling back the sheets and curling up in the warmth of each other. Still not saying a word, but breaths synchronized and shared.

Steve doesn’t think about it until he wakes up the next morning. When he feels the empty space beside him in bed. When he walks through the apartment and doesn’t see any sign of Bucky. When he notices that the tactical gear is gone from the floor of the bathroom, and the pajamas are running in the washing machine. Only then does he think about what happened, and wonder if it will happen again.


End file.
